Lawsuit Says Mirena IUD Caused Severe Birth Defects

Lawsuit Says Mirena IUD Caused Severe Birth Defects

By Courtney Coren

An Indiana woman has filed a Mirena IUD lawsuit against Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. after her birth control device broke up into several pieces, causing uncontrolled release of the active hormone. Her lawsuit alleges the complications caused severe birth defects to her unborn baby.

Indiana resident Maegan Rene Clark had a Mirena IUD inserted in her uterus on Feb. 16, 2011 at the Fayette Regional Healthplex in Connersville, Indiana. At that time, Clark was 19 years old and the mother of a 9-month old baby boy, who was born on May 11, 2010, without any complications. Her doctor said he could see no reason based on her medical history why she shouldn’t use the Mirena IUD for birth control.

According to the Mirena lawsuit, the IUD was implanted on March 2, 2011, without complications by her doctor. Some time after, she began experiencing some adverse side effects, which she took to be normal for the Mirena IUD. However, they were unpleasant enough for her that she decided to have the birth control device removed. She returned to her doctor on Dec. 1, 2011, for that purpose.

When her doctor tried to retrieve the Mirena IUD he could not find the removal string, prompting an ultrasound to see if the IUD could be located. However, her doctor  found out that the device had broken up into pieces inside Clark’s uterus.

“Real time transvaginal ultrasound of the pelvis was performed,” the ultrasound report said. “Within the uterine cavity there is an IUD in place however it appears fragmented with a fragment noted in the lower uterine segment and another fragment in the fundus of the uterine cavity.”

The doctor also performed a diagnostic hysteroscopy on Dec. 8, 2011, to try to locate and remove the Mirena pieces, but the “fragments had become embedded in the plaintiff’s uterine cavity and the fundus thereof.” As a result, he could not remove them during the procedure.

“Consequently, the fragmented and broken Mirena IUS [sic] continued to release unregulated and uncontrolled amounts of the powerful LNG hormone into plaintiff’s body,” the Mirena lawsuit states.

In March 2012, Clark found out that she was pregnant with her second child. Her due date was in December 2012. It was later confirmed in April by a second doctor in Oxford, Ohio.

On June 27, 2012, an abdominal ultrasound showed that her unborn baby had two serious birth defects, anencephaly and acalvaria. Anencephaly is a neural tube defect, in which “a baby is born without parts the brain and skull.”

“Acalvaria is a developmental defect characterized by the absence of the flat bones of the cranial vault, absence of the dura mater and muscles associated with it, skull abnormalities, and the absence of a skull cap,” Clark’s lawsuit states.

Clark alleges that the birth defects were caused by the “continued uncontrolled release of the powerful LNG hormone” from the fragmented Mirena IUD.

The second doctor told Clark that babies with these birth defects will die shortly past birth. As a result, she decided to have the baby aborted, as was recommended.

Clark still suffers from “dysfunctional uterine bleeding, intermenstrual bleeding, irregular menstruation, abdominal pain, and she is unable to conceive another child.”

This has also caused severe emotional distress for the Indiana woman, according to the Mirena lawsuit.

Clark’s charges against Bayer include design defect, manufacturing defect, deceitful marketing, failure to warn, strict liability, and breach of warranty.

She is asking Bayer to cover her medical expenses and pay punitive damages, as well.

The Mirena IUD lawsuit is Maegan Rene Clark v. Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, Case No. 1:13-cv-01565-JMS-DKL, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division.

If you or someone you know has been injured by a Mirena IUD, legal options are available. Learn more and get a free legal consultation regarding a claim’s eligibility at the Mirena IUD Injury Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Investigation. Experienced legal professionals have access to medical experts to assess whether or not a Mirena IUD may be playing a role in your current pain, discomfort or other serious side effects, so act now.